Updates, advisories and surprises

(4:31 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Starbucks Corp.
SBUX, +0.17%
the world's biggest coffee-house chain, reported late Thursday its fiscal third-quarter profit rose to $512.6 million, or 67 cents a share, from $417.8 million, or 55 cents a share a year ago. Revenue for the three months ended June 29 rose 11% to $4.15 billion from $3.74 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected the Seattle-based company to report earnings of 66 cents a share on $4.14 billion in sales. Global same-store sales growth in the quarter was 6%, led by a 7% gain in the China, Asia-Pacific market. Analysts had been looking for 5.3% global same-store sales growth. The company raised its earlier 2014 full-year earnings outlook to $2.70 to $2.72 from $2.62 to $2.67 a share earlier and said it now sees fourth-quarter earnings of 76 cents to 78 cents, including an estimated one-time benefit of 5 cents a share. Starbucks shares were down 0.8% at $79.80 in after-hours trade.

Amazon reports loss of $126 million

(4:31 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Amazon.com Inc.
AMZN, +0.17%
on Thursday reported a second-quarter loss of $126 million, or 27 cents a share on revenue of $19.34 billion. During the year ago period, the online retailer reported a loss of $7 million, or 2 cents a share, on $15.7 billion in sales. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast Amazon to lose 16 cents a share on $19.3 billion in sales. Amazon also reported an operating loss of $15 million, while the company had earlier forecast operating losses between $55 million and $455 million. Amazon said that for its third quarter, it expects revenue to be between $19.7 billion and $21.5 billion, and is estimating an operating loss in a range of $410 million to $810 million. Amazon shares fell more than 5% in after-hours trading.

Pandora posts wider loss; shares fall

(4:14 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - Pandora Media
P, -0.22%
on Thursday reported a second-quarter net loss of $11.73 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with a loss of $6.9 million, or 4 cents a share, for the year-earlier period. Revenue rose to $218.89 million from $153.1 million. On an adjusted basis, the company reported a profit of 4 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet on average had expected the Internet radio company to report a profit of 3 cents a share, on revenue of $218.6 million. Pandora said it had 76.4 million active listeners at the end of the second quarter, up 7.5% year-over-year. The company said listener hours grew 29% to 5.04 billion. Pandora shares fell 10% after hours.

E-Trade shares fall 3% after earnings

(9:58 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- E-Trade Financial Corp.
ETFC, +0.56%
shares fell 3.5% in early trading on Thursday, after bouncing back from a drop of 5%. The online broker reported its second-quarter earnings swung to a profit on Wednesday after the bell, modestly beating analyst expectations. Despite the positive news, analysts at Sandler O'Neill lowered earnings estimates for 2014 $1.01 from $1.05 and for 2015 to $1.12 from $1.19, citing a higher expense run rate, slower growth on the balance sheet and a higher provision expense. Net revenue fell by 0.5% from the year-ago quarter to $438 million. The average commission per trade was down to $10.72 from $11.10 in the second quarter of 2013. Trading volumes were also down due to the lack of volatility in the market, the firm said.

Facebook's gains lead advancers in tech stocks

(9:53 AM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Gains from Facebook Inc.
FB, +0.65%
stood out in the tech sector Thursday as the social-networking company's shares rose more than 5% to $75.03. Late Wednesday, Facebook reported upbeat second-quarter results led by strong revenue in mobile advertising. Amazon.com Inc.
AMZN, +0.17%
and Pandora Media Inc.
P, -0.22%
were each up by about 1% ahead of both companies' quarterly results, due after the market close. One big decliner was Angie's List Inc.
ANGI, -1.93%
which plunged more than 21% to $7.99 a share after the online professional-services recommendation company reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results. The Nasdaq Composite Index
COMP, +0.50%
was up by almost 8 points t 4,481.

Royal Caribbean shares rise as profit tops estimates

(8:47 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. shares
RCL, +0.48%
rose more than 2% in premarket trade, after the company beat second-quarter profit estimates and raised its outlook for the full year. Royal Caribbean said it earned $137.7 million, or 62 cents a share, in the quarter, up from $24.7 million, or 11 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 66 cents a share, well ahead of the FactSet consensus of 53 cents a share. Revenue came to $1.980 billion, up from $1.88 billion, compared with the FactSet estimate of $1.988 billion. Net yields rose 2.6% on a constant-currency basis. "Higher pricing for close-in European sailings propelled us above the top end of our guidance for the quarter," said Chief Financial Officer Jason T. Liberty in a statement. "While the environment in the Caribbean remains promotional, our European itineraries continue to resonate well with strong demand from all markets." The company is now raising its outlook for 2014 to $3.40 to $3.50 a share, which is a 10 cents increase from the midpoint of earlier guidance.

3M profit, sales rise in line with forecasts

(7:47 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- 3M
MMM, +1.48%
reported second-quarter net profit of $1.27 billion, or $1.91 a share, up from $1.2 billion, or $1.71 a share, a year ago. Sales for the quarter ending June 30 rose to $8.13 billion from last year's $7.75 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting earnings of $1.91 a share and sales of $8.1 billion. The company, which produces brands such as Scotch tape and Post-it Notes, affirmed its 2014 earnings outlook of $7.30 to $7.55 a share. "Strong productivity fueled increased growth investments, and operating margins increased year-on-year to nearly 23 percent," said Chief Executive Inge Thulin. The stock, a component of the Dow industrials, was indicated higher in premarket trade.

AmerisourceBergen beats forecasts, lifted by new business

(7:45 AM ET) MADRID (MarketWatch) -- AmerisourceBergen Corp.
ABC, +2.63%
on Thursday beat Wall Street forecasts, as the drug wholesale company noted a strong June performance driven by bringing on board new business. AmerisourceBergen reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings from continuing operations of $1.01 per share, versus 78 cents in the year-ago period. Analysts polled by FactSet Research were forecasting earnings of 92 cents per share. Revenue totaled $30.35 billion, versus $21.91 billion in the third quarter a year ago. AmerisourceBergen expects adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations in fiscal year 2014 to be in the range of $3.89 to $3.94, with revenue forecast in the 35% range and operating income growth in the high-teens percentage range. Free cash flow is seen in the high end of the range of $500 to $700 million.

Caterpillar profit beats estimates but sales lag

(7:43 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Caterpillar Inc.
CAT, -0.77%
said it earned $999 million, or $1.57 a share, in the second quarter, up from $960 million, or $1.45 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding restructuring costs, per-share earnings came to $1.69, ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.51. Sales totaled $14.15 billion, down from $14.62 billion a year ago, and below the FactSet consensus of $14.45 billion. "We increased the bottom line despite a weak quarter for our Resource Industries segment, which is principally mining," Chief Executive Doug Oberhelman said in a statement. The company is now tightening its sales outlook for 2014 to a range of $54 billion to $56 billion, from a prior outlook of $56 billion, plus or minus 5%. but it is raising its per-share earnings outlook to $5.75 a share from an earlier $5.55. Excluding restructuring costs, the full-year outlook is for $6.20 a share. Shares slid 1.5% in premarket trade.

Hershey matches Q2 profit, sales estimates, lifts dividend

(7:15 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Hershey
HSY, +1.89%
reported second-quarter profit of $168.2 million, or 75 cents a share, up from $159.5 million, or 70 cents a share in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, earnings were 76 cents a share, matching the average analyst estimate compiled by FactSet. Sales for the quarter ending June 29 rose 4.6% from a year ago to $1.58 billion, also inline with the FactSet estimate. For 2014, the chocolate company expects adjusted earnings and sales growth to be at the low end its long-term targets of 9% to 11% and 5% to 7%, respectively. The company also raised its quarterly dividend 10% to 53.5 cents a share. "In the second quarter, macroeconomic headwinds in the U.S. continued to be an issue for many retailers and consumers," said Chief Executive John P. Bilbrey. "We continue to do well, although our U.S. second quarter net sales growth of 4.4 percent was less than expectations." The stock, which closed Wednesday with a 3.3% decline for the year, was still inactive in Thursday's premarket.

Ford earnings beat expectations; shares rise

(6:51 AM ET) LONDON (MarketWatch) - Ford Motor Co.
F, +1.07%
on Thursday said second-quarter earnings were $1.31 billion, or 32 cents a share, compared with $1.23 billion, or 30 cents a share, a year ago. Earnings after tax excluding special items were 40 cents a share, and revenue was $37.4 billion, compared with $37.9 billion in the year-earlier period. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected adjusted earnings of 36 cents a share and revenue of $36 billion. Ford also affirmed its 2014 pretax profit forecast of $7 billion to $8 billion. Shares of Ford rose 1.2% in premarket trade after the quarterly results were released.

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